The Hindu : Front Page : Sanjaynagar residents install floodgates to check rainwater

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Friday, Sep 14, 2007
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Sanjaynagar residents install floodgates to check rainwater

Afshan Yasmeen

People are so scared when it rains that they wake up every two hours

Even a light drizzle blocks the drain and houses are flooded
Storm-water drains in the area are being remodelled

— Photo: Sampath Kumar G.P.

Innovative: A woman showing a gate designed to check water from entering her house in a low-lying areas of Dollar Colony at Sanjaynagar in Bangalore.

BANGALORE: Huge floodgates to check rainwater from the road entering houses, a special gate valve on the main sewage pipeline to prevent overflowing and an innovative way of diverting all water collected on the rooftop to the road through a special pipeline.

This may seem like a project description of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), but it is an idea hit upon by a few residents of the posh Rajamahal Vilas (RMV) 2nd stage, 2nd Block in Sanjaynagar to prevent flooding of their houses.

“Varuna Japa,” the prayer to the rain god, has taken on a menacing meaning for these residents. Even a light drizzle blocks the storm-water drain and floods the houses.

Flooding

“When it starts raining, we start praying. This is because we know for sure that our houses will get flooded. All our appliances, bedding and even our vehicles get submerged, and that was why we had the floodgate idea,” Mala V. Bhat, a resident said.

Hiranmayi Srinivasan, whose kitchen was flooded during the recent rains, also followed suit and got the gates installed.

Her neighbour Padma Sreenivasa, whose house was filled with water up to the first floor last year, said that she also would get one installed soon.

Two cars (a Skoda and a Swift) parked in the basement of two houses last year were submerged. “Now when it starts raining we shift our vehicles out of our basement,” Ms. Mala said.

Bitter experience

V. Satyamurthy, president of the Residents’ Welfare Association of 2nd and 4th Main Roads in RMV 2nd Stage, said, “Our road acts like a valley for rainwater that flows all along from Bhadrappa Layout, New BEL Road, IISc. and surrounding areas. Wednesday’s rain, though not heavy, again proved bitter. We started our day with water, slush and dirt in the basement and compound.”

The residents are so scared of rain that every night they wake up once every two hours to check if it is raining.

“Last year the flooding was so bad that it reached the first floor of our houses, even though they are located two feet above road level. Though we have complained to the BBMP several times, it has been of no use,” Mr. Satyamurthy said. Pointing out that the main storm-water drain on 1st Cross in RMV 2nd stage cannot carry the heavy load of water, Ms. Mala said, “The drain gets blocked and overflows into our houses. No vehicle can pass through this road till the rain stops. But it is surprising that within 15 minutes after the rain stops, water recedes and one cannot believe that it is same road that was flooded.”

Diverting water

According to Ms. Padma, “All that the BBMP needs to do is properly plan and divert 50 per cent of water flowing into this drain to some other drain. This will save us from all flooding problems.”

When contacted, S.H. Prabhu, the jurisdictional BBMP Assistant Executive Engineer for storm-water drains of Hebbal valley (Package I), promised that the problem would be solved once the drain remodelling was completed.

“The existing pipeline cannot carry the full discharge of water when it rains. We are widening and deepening the drain and work will be completed within a fortnight,” he added.

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